Rising Darkness
by PrinnyMist
Summary: It been six years since Sasuke left Konoha. Now Sasuke is back and has been exonerated of all his past crimes. But a shadow from his past still lingers. And ninja from a mysterious village have set their sights on Sasuke as well...
1. A New Day

PrinnyMist steps out from behind a red curtain

PrinnyMist steps out from behind a red curtain. He stands in the center of a stage.

"Hello and welcome to my first fanfiction in the Naruto universe." He bows as a young woman with short white hair in a white kimono and a young man with unkempt black hair and dark blue eyes emerge from the other side of a stage. "I'd like to now turn the stage over to two of my OC's, Natsuki and Ryousuke!"

Natsuki and Ryou bow.

"**Disclaimer: Naruto and his universe are property of Masashi Kishimoto. PrinnyMist does not own these characters, the manga, or the anime in any way, shape or form.**" Natsuki softly announces.

"PrinnyMist's only wish is that you keep an open mind when you read this fanfiction, and to leave a review and/or constructive comment." Ryou calmly adds.

Natsuki smiles as she nudges Ryou.

"**PrinnyMist however, does own these characters: Natsuki, Ryousuke, Keisuke, Drago, and Nina.**" Ryou quickly adds.

"Without further ado, PrinnyMist presents: "

Naruto: Rising Darkness

Chapter 1

Everything was white. Naruto blinked in disbelief. Was this real? He felt the whiteness around him. It was soft and flowing, like silk sheets. He glanced around, searching for something to explain this bizarre situation. He finally glanced down and leaped in shock; he was naked. He quickly covered his crotch and crept through dream-like clouds that seemed to faintly outline a path. Naruto paused to stare down the path, hoping that there was an end to it.

_Naruto_…

Naruto's eyes widened with surprise. It was just a whisper, but still, it seemed so loud. But before he could contemplate this paradox, a figure appeared at edge of the white horizon. As Naruto squinted to discover the figure's identity, it began to race towards him.

_Naruto_!

The voice was louder this time, calming, clear, and friendly. It was familiar, too, but Naruto still could not figure out whose it was. Deciding that the voice was coming from the figure, he raced towards it. He took a single step forward, and quickly raised his arms to catch the falling figure. But he was too close, and in a split second, their lips met. Naruto's eyes initially widened with surprise, but they quickly turned into passionate, tear-filled eyes.

He caressed the figure's soft white skin, free from blemishes. He cherished the figure's full, gentle lips. He stared into the figure's unique, all-seeing eyes that saw his ultimate desires. Naruto and the figure shared a loving smile, the kind shared by secretive lovers. But they would keep their love secret no longer. At last, the Sharingan was his…

--

"RIBBIT! RIBBIT!"

The loud, annoying croaking of Naruto's alarm clock filled his bedroom. Naruto glared angrily at it, despite its timely interference of the nightmare. He mentally reminded himself for the thousandth time to get a new, less obnoxious one. He yawned and stretched, feeling remarkably unenergetic, despite the trials he would be going through later that day. He lazily lay back down and rolled over into the soft white skin and softer, red lips of his bed-mate.

"Hey, Hinata."

Hinata giggled and forced her tongue into Naruto's mouth. Without opening her eyes, she went further and rolled Naruto onto his back, then slyly peeked at him with her left eye.

"Ohayoo…" She cooed, as they kissed again. "I'm glad that we were able to spend last night together on that secret mission." She laughed, blushed, and let Naruto slip out from under her.

Naruto laughed as he picked up random articles of Hinata's clothing. "It was all your idea, Hinata."

They shared a loving smile, wishing that they could stay together for longer…

--

The Konoha ANBU collapsed into the pool of his two comrades' blood, his own beginning to mingle with theirs. The ninja who had defeated him, a tall young man with blond, spiky hair, stood over the corpse and sighed. Behind him, his two teammates shook their heads. One, another young man, this one with glasses and short, neat black hair, removed the mask from the fallen ninja.

"That's one more down…One more and then we can report to Lord Hokage." The one with glasses coldly reported.

"Yeah…this is too easy for us, though." The spiky-haired ninja groaned. "I want a challenge."

"Well, you'll get one soon. Once we complete this mission, we can go after Him again." Their teammate, a kunoichi, calmly responded, while examining the bodies. "The one you just beat was reanimated. We just killed someone who was already dead."

"Damn. So there's still two more of his buddies out there?" The spiky-haired ninja complained in his gruff voice.

With that, the three ninja leapt back into the shadows to continue their hunt…

--

In the lingering moments of the morning twilight, Naruto gazed upon the mountain-side, as he always had for the past year. The five towering stone faces returned their usual, blank stare. Naruto's eyes scanned the monument one last time, trying to absorb the courage, strength, and ideals that each face represented. He gazed upon the last two faces on the right and smiled.

"Granny Tsunade, Father, one day, my face will be next to yours." He promised, before turning away to face the exam building. "Even if all I can be is a Genin, I will not give up my dream of being Hokage." He hesitated before starting off, wondering if he should take one last look at the great Hokages who protected Konoha. Slowly, he raised his head, and shook it.

_I won't look back. Not until I've become Hokage. Today, I'm gonna take one step closer to my dream_…With that, Naruto took one step forward towards the exam building.

As the sun rose on Konoha that day, those who gazed upon the mountainside swore that each and every Hokage smiled.

--

Hinata sighed as she continued to browse through the selection of wedding kimono. It wasn't as if her relationship with Naruto was a complete secret, but the clan was in an uproar. She wondered if her father was angry or happy that she had decided to marry Naruto. She paused as her father's words came back to her.

--

"You…are sure of this decision?" Hiashi gruffly asked.

"Yes, Father." Hinata bowed deeply.

"I see." Hiashi furrowed his brow and lowered his head in thought. "If that is the case…then I am at loss at what to do."

Hinata cringed a little. She had expected this. "Ever since my recent decision to name you the heiress to the clan, I could not bear to give you the seal of the branch family. But I fear that the elders will restrict him from his dream of becoming Hokage in order to prevent the Kyuubi from resurfacing. They have all pushed for his exclusion in any promotion exams, despite clear evidence that he is more than capable of controlling his power." Hiashi continued in a calm voice.

Hinata raised her head as her father rose to his feet. "I do not believe that the son of the Fourth would like to remain caged. If you wish to remain with him, I will not stop you. I will speak with the elders on this matter…I know that the Hyuga Clan has one of the most well-kept Kekkei Genkai in the world, but I feel that Naruto does not belong in the clan as it is."

Deep in thought, Hiashi walked out of the room, as a single tear rolled down Hinata's cheek.

--

As the memory faded away, she looked up and wondered why she was shopping for a wedding kimono now, before her father had even talked with the clan elders. She slipped out of the store, and gazed at the exam building, the same one where she and Naruto first took the Chuunin Exam in. Naruto would be taking the exams with Sasuke and a ninja that no one inside Konoha had ever met before. Even though his skills had vastly improved since his first time, Hinata still could not shake the doubt that something terrible would happen to Naruto during the exam…

--

Shikamaru gazed over his clipboard at the Genin taking the written portion of the exam. Several had already cracked or failed, and most of the remaining applicants were nervous and sweating, afraid to make another mistake that would cost them and their teammates their chance to become Chuunin. He noticed one shaking ninja peek at his neighbor's test, his final slip-up. Shikamaru nudged the proctor next to him, who swiftly leaped over to the cheater and rammed her fan down on his paper. Temari gave the terrified ninja her perfected basilisk gaze, causing the poor man to scream in horror and subsequently faint. She relaxed and sighed, as the fainted ninja's teammates helped him out of the room. She glanced over at the ninja's neighbor and stifled her laughter. It was completely blank, save for the smudges caused by the ninja's drool.

_At least he's not snoring_, Temari thought, before leaping back to her seat next to Shikamaru.

"Hey, is he allowed to do that?" She whispered into his ear, as Ibiki began the final portion of the exam.

"I don't know. But according to Ibiki, the first time Naruto took the test, he had a blank paper." Shikamaru frowned as Naruto continued to snooze while Ibiki explained the last question. "I think it would be too troublesome to wake him up."

"Despite what you may have heard before, we're being a little stricter this time around. This time, anyone who failed to answer any of the questions correctly will be forced to remain a Genin forever!" Ibiki announced, causing several ninja to immediately leap from their seats and withdraw. Ibiki smirked; the pool had dropped to nearly one-fourth its original size.

"Hey, how could the Hokage let Naruto, Sasuke, and that guy from Darkness, Ryousuke or whatever, form a team? Two of them are supposed to be under S-class protection and the third is a complete unknown!" Temari watched as the remaining ninja continued to battle the difficult decision of risking permanent demotion.

"The Fifth Hokage gave them special permission." Shikamaru bluntly responded, noting that one team, from the Village of Darkness, seemed unnaturally calm. "I'm not worried about Naruto. But I am worried about Ryousuke and his teammates from Darkness."

"Why's that?" Temari's eyes wandered towards the four ninja Shikamaru pointed out.

"They've been far too calm during the entire exam. Normal Genin would show some sign of fear or tension, but those three didn't even flinch when Ibiki mentioned the rules of the final question." Shikamaru looked over his notes. "I haven't marked them down for cheating, either. And," He peeked at the one with short black hair and glasses. "The one with the glasses and neat hair, Keisuke, took only 5 minutes to answer all the questions."

"That's impossible…Even you take 10 minutes to answer the questions!" Temari glanced at Keisuke, who still sat with his head resting on his hands, calmly and quietly. To Temari, it seemed that he was simply a life-like statue. She shivered, and quickly turned back to Shikamaru, who frowned.

"I have a bad feeling that those three will be quite troublesome…Especially Keisuke."

--

Naruto awoke with a start, his dream interrupted by a powerful blow to his face. As the room swirled around him, he could barely make out a tall, warped black figure leaning on a large metal beam. He shook his head and blinked a few times rapidly, then rubbed his eyes and yawned.

"What time is it?" He blurted, groping for his alarm clock.

"It's time for the second part of the Chuunin Exam." _The voice was familiar_, thought Naruto, as he struggled to stand. "You slept through the entire first part, and we thought it'd be too troublesome to wake you up."

"You sound like your husband, Temari." Naruto laughed, as he rubbed his cheek. "From the way you hit me, you must still boss him around."

Temari smirked and slapped Shikamaru on the back. "You got that right. Anyway, the second part of the exam is going to be in the same place we had ours; the Forest of Death. The rest of your team went ahead. You've got about 10 minutes to get there, or else you're out."

"What? Aw man, that's not much time! Well, I, uh, gotta go!" Naruto dashed off, as Temari clenched her fists.

"Hey! Get back here!" She shouted, starting to give chase. She took her first step, and tried to take her second, but stopped suddenly. "Shika!" She shouted, as her body forcefully relaxed.

"Let him go, Temari. That's the way he does things." Shikamaru let his shadow recede from his wife's, and led her by the waist to the door. "Even though he's not always prepared, he'll find a way to do what he wants. Although I have to admit, it's a completely troublesome and unpredictable way of doing things."

"Well, you're like that when you're with me." Temari laughed, kissing Shikamaru on his cheek.

"Well, uh, I, uh…What a drag." Shikamaru conceded. "You have got to be the most terrifying, troublesome, beautiful woman ever."

"But you still love me." Temari smiled, as they headed after Naruto, who had mistakenly headed towards the Hokage's office instead of the Forest of Death.

--


	2. Death and Life

PrinnyMist steps out from behind a red curtain

PrinnyMist steps out from behind a red curtain. He stands in the center of a stage.

"Hello and welcome to the second chapter." PrinnyMist pulls out a gun. "But enough of that. Did you know? Persona 3 is pretty fun. Y'see, you have to take this thing that looks like a gun and—"

"HOLD IT!" Drago yells and leaps onto the stage. He jabs a finger at PrinnyMist. "You're supposed to recap the last chapters and introduce us to say the disclaimer!"

PrinnyMist shrugs and slips offstage.

"Well, last time Naruto got his butt kicked by Temari for sleeping in class. That was so awesome! She just like SMASHED him with her fan…I'd like to see if I can survive one of those! It looks like a challenge!"" Drago proudly announces.

"More than that happened." Keisuke reprimands in his low, emotionless voice. "In fact, I want to bring attention to the first part. PrinnyMist does not support that pairing in any way shape or form. It is a joke, which contrasts what is actually happening."

Drago stretched and yawned. "BOOOORING! I want to kill stuff now."

"**Disclaimer: Naruto and his universe are property of Masashi Kishimoto. PrinnyMist does not own these characters, the manga, or the anime in any way, shape or form. PrinnyMist's only wish is that you keep an open mind when you read this fanfiction, and to leave a review and/or constructive comment.**" Keisuke continues, ignoring his teammate.

"**PrinnyMist however, does own these characters: Natsuki, Ryousuke, Keisuke, Drago, and Nina.**" Nina softly adds from the sidelines.

"Without further ado, PrinnyMist presents: "

Naruto: Rising Darkness

Chapter 2

Naruto leapt through the woods, keeping an eye out for enemy teams. Before, he had Sakura and Sasuke to watch his back, but now, he was on his own. He continued leaping through the woods, only finding trees and the native wildlife. No snakes, no blood-thirsty ninjas, and no enemy teams. Naruto paused and gripped the Heaven scroll hidden in his jacket. All he had to do was find his way into the tower while Sasuke and Ryou obtained an Earth scroll. He sighed and plopped down against the thick trunk of the tree. His eye lids started to droop, even though he had plenty of sleep during the first portion of the exam. He shook his head, remembering his part of the mission, but soon his eyes shut for good. His head bobbed up and down as he tried to fight off the never-ending waves of slumber, until at last his head simply dropped and snores escaped his lips.

"He's asleep." The gravelly whisper of a Kusagakure ninja was barely audible over Naruto's snores.

"I can't believe he fell so easily to our Sleeping Pollen!" Another Kusa-nin responded, emerging from the edge of the branch that Naruto slept on.

"I know. Plus we saw him grab at that scroll!" The third gleefully cackled, drawing a kunai to cut the scroll out of Naruto's jacket.

"Why don't you just kill him too?" The gravelly voiced ninja said. His companion evilly smiled and stabbed the slumbering Naruto in the heart.

"Too easy." The one with the kunai chuckled, before dropping his weapon in shock. Naruto had vanished in a puff of smoke.

Two loud cracks rang out behind the ninja. He swiftly turned around and let his jaw drop. His two teammates lay unconscious on the ground, with large bruises to their faces. The last Kusa-nin scrambled to find an escape, although he knew it was futile; the attacker could very well be right behind him…

The last thing he saw was the bottom of a boot.

Naruto couldn't help but smile as he took the Earth scroll from the fallen, gravel-voiced ninja. He carefully tucked the scroll into his jacket as Sasuke and Ryou tied up the defeated ninja.

"We knew you guys had been following us for a while." Naruto laughed, as both Sasuke and Ryou shared an exasperated sigh. They nodded and leaped away, as Naruto shouted and scrambled to catch up.

They had not traveled far when Sasuke paused and leaped behind a tree. Ryou's eyes widened as his ears twitched. He leaped beside Sasuke as the two covered their ears. Naruto leaped past them with a puzzled look on his face, just as a gust of wind shoved him violently backwards.

The trees trembled as the force of the blast stripped the leaves from their branches. Naruto gritted his teeth as he continued to fly backwards. With a puff of smoke, a kage bunshin appeared behind him. Using his kage bunshin as a springboard, Naruto hurled himself to safety behind a tree near his teammates.

The wind immediately died down as Sasuke peered out from behind his tree. His eyes widened and his jaw dropped, while Ryou sighed and shook his head.

"Whatever that was, it was huge!" Naruto exclaimed, before leaping to the top of his tree. As soon as he perched himself on a thin branch, his jaw dropped to his feet.

An enormous cloud of dust and bits of trees rose nearly half a mile into the sky in front of him. He swiftly shook his head and blinked. The cloud continued to rise and expand. _Whatever had caused that explosion must be very, very dangerous_, thought Naruto.

He rejoined his teammates and the three raced through the treetops towards the rising cloud of debris. Although the central tower was to their left, Sasuke insisted on finding out what caused the destruction.

"If I have to fight the guy responsible for that, I don't know if I'll survive!" Naruto shouted to himself, as sunlight streamed in from a gap in the trees ahead. The three leaped through the gap without hesitation.

Below them lay hundreds of tattered tree stumps, a floor of leaves and shredded bark, and several bodies of ninja and animals. Sasuke and Ryou gracefully landed on a tall stump, while Naruto flailed rapidly as he plummeted towards the devastation below.

"Oh man! Kage Bunshin!" Naruto shouted, forming a single kage bunshin. The two Narutos screamed wildly for a second, before remembering their plan. The clone lifted the real Naruto onto his shoulders. Naruto took a deep breath and leaped from the clone's shoulders, causing the clone to disperse. Naruto soared through the air and landed on a shorter stump. He let out a long sigh, plopped himself down and crossed his legs. After letting the adrenaline subside from his body, he stood up and surveyed the destruction.

--

"You went overboard, Drago." Keisuke admonished. Little emotion, save a bit of anger, was present. "Even though they only wanted our scroll, you could've at least let one of them live."

"Yeah, yeah." Drago pouted, his gruff voice reduced to a scratchy whisper. "It's just that we have to act like we're so weak. Why can't we just go assassinate our target already?"

Keisuke growled at Drago, who leapt back a little. "Nina, show him the orders." He groaned, as Nina cautiously slipped over to Drago and handed him a red scroll.

"Remain undercover for the duration of the Chuunin Exam. When the signal is given, commence assassination." Drago paused and gave Keisuke a confused look. "This doesn't explain anything."

"We will still follow our lord's orders." Keisuke rubbed the back of his neck. "I know how you feel; we're clearly Jounin level, and we have to deal with these rookies. However," He glanced at his teammates from the corner of his eyes. "I'll have to rely on you two to conserve your strength. I'll need someone to cover me while I kill our target."

Drago and Nina nodded, the sweat from their brows dripping onto the moist ground.

In a flash, the three vanished, leaving behind a few spots of sweat that soon vanished under the pouring rain.

--

Tsunade looked down at the 5 teams that had passed the second stage of the exam. She smiled as her gaze passed over Naruto's and Konohamaru's team, as well as the Dark-nin team. _Only one team from Sand, and one from Mist. How very strange_, she thought, before signaling Shizune to begin explaining the final part of the exam.

Suddenly, one Sand ninja collapsed, blood beginning to soak his vest. Konohamaru's teammates jumped back, and nervously shouted to withdraw from the exam. Outside, thunder crashed and lightning lit up the Forest of Death. Shizune finished looking over the fallen Sand ninja, frowned, and shook her head. Tsunade glanced at the Dark-nin. Keisuke gave a rare smirk, while the other two seemed visibly concerned by the Sand ninja's sudden death. The ninja who stood in front of his fallen comrade stabbed his index finger at Keisuke.

"You! You killed him!" He screamed, before leaping towards Keisuke and flinging a pair of shuriken.

Keisuke simply ducked under the attack and rammed his fist into his attacker's gut. The Sand ninja coughed up blood and doubled over. He clutched his stomach and angrily cursed Keisuke, who simply frowned and kicked him back towards his teammates.

"Only the ones who are worthy of becoming Chuunin should continue. There isn't any hope for hot-blooded fools such as you." Keisuke froze the air as he spoke, causing the defeated ninja to shiver. "If you're scared, I'd be like those two little brats and quit, too."

Tsunade groaned and shook her head. She had hoped that the Dark-nin wouldn't cause too much trouble; otherwise, the exam might turn out to be similar to the Sound invasion from six years ago. The Village of Darkness was small, but from the reports she had received, the ninja it produced were Jounin level rogues hailing from every country. It was a village of mercenaries, but she was willing to give them a chance to compare themselves with ninja of other villages in a controlled environment. However, from what she had heard from the proctors closest to Keisuke on the third exam, she knew that he was the most deadly and powerful ninja on the team.

"Lord Hokage, are you still sure my team will not be too much for this child's game?" A young girl with short silver hair teased. She wore a white kimono over metal mesh, and carried a long metal pole strapped to her back like a sword. "They were the first to finish the second part, with a total of 4 scrolls, if I recall. Perhaps you should just recognize them all as Jounin level and be done with it."

"Stop bragging. You're barely older than your team, and just because you're the daughter of the lord of your ragtag village doesn't mean you can push your way around like that!" One of the Konoha proctors demanded, giving the girl his best evil glare.

"Oh, but I'm not pushing my way around because I'm the daughter of the village lord." The girl smiled, before flicking her wrist and slashing at the proctor with her metal pole. A bright flash of light extended from the edge of the pole, slicing open the proctor's vest. "You'll see that I'm quite powerful…more powerful than you." She smiled as the proctor clutched the now bleeding wound in his shoulder. He grunted before collapsing in pain on the floor. Tsunade groaned again and slammed her foot down, causing the building to shake.

"ENOUGH!" She shouted, as everyone focused on her. "Everyone who feels that they cannot continue will now leave this building!" Every ninja on the floor recoiled at her sudden outburst, and the beaten Sand ninja and one of the Mist ninja immediately raced from the building. "And you, Natsuki Ryukana. I would appreciate it if you would refrain from nearly killing more of our ninja." Tsunade tended to the fallen proctor and glared at Natsuki to enforce her point.

Natsuki simply smiled and shrugged. "My deepest apologies, Lord Hokage." She responded sardonically, bowing deeply. She quietly and promptly shuffled backwards into the line of team leaders.

Tsunade waited until Natsuki had removed her hand from her weapon before continuing. "One month from now, the third and final stage of this Chuunin Exam will begin! I want all of you to pick a slip of paper from the box Shizune will pass around."

"Wait." Sasuke calmly demanded. Naruto glanced at his friend, who simply closed his eyes. "I quit, too."

"WHAT?!" Naruto shouted, grabbing Sasuke by his collar. "But why?"

Sasuke looked down at Naruto, his face still emotionless. "I don't care about being anything more than myself. Even if I'm a Genin, I can still defend Konoha."

Naruto said nothing as he lowered Sasuke to the ground. With a small smirk on his face, Sasuke waved goodbye as the storm continued to rage outside.

--

Ryou waited outside of the tower, his short black hair and light blue robes soaked with rain. He frowned, not because he was wet, but because the meeting between Tsunade and Natsuki had lasted for more than the expected hour.

"One month from now, the final section of the Chuunin exam will commence. There isn't much time, then." Ryou softly commented to himself. "I must become stronger; strong enough to fight even the Kyuubi itself." He stared at his fist. "I never thought that such a goof would be the one to contain the most powerful demon in this world."

"Don't worry about it, darling." Natsuki chirped, skipping out of the tower with an umbrella. "You're already at my level of skill, so it shouldn't be too hard for you!" Natsuki smiled as she held the umbrella over their heads. "But even that doesn't mean much if you catch a cold!"

Ryou smiled and sighed. "You know the cold never bothers me. I was always cold in my childhood."

"But now you have me to keep you warm." Natsuki leaned her head on her husband's shoulder as they headed towards the exit.

--

Naruto stood outside Sakura's home. He felt quite excited; not because he was at Sakura's house, but because this would be the first time that everyone would be getting together since Sasuke's return to Konoha. Often, at least three of his friends would be out on missions, and although whoever had free time got together regularly, it was the time when everyone could meet that they looked forward to. Naruto didn't need to knock; the door opened for him.

"Hey Naruto! What kept you so long?" Kakashi chuckled, before ushering Naruto inside. "You're even later than me this time…I hope my habits aren't THAT contagious."

"Well, they're not, Kakashi-sensei. I still think Icha-Icha is boring." Naruto laughed. He took a few steps into the house and looked around. "Wow."

It certainly was a party inside. Sakura and Ino rushed back and forth between the kitchen and the circular center table, keeping the platters of food well stocked, the drinks filled, and the alcohol out of the hands of many. Sasuke sat in a corner, cold and unreceptive, except for the casual smile or greetings he gave to passerby. Kiba kept putting food on his plate then promptly consuming it in the sloppiest fashion, spraying bits of it all over Shino's hood and glasses. Neji appeared to be drunk, and kept trying to get Tenten to kiss him. Tenten, on the other hand, kept stopping Neji by slapping him, taking his drink, and running away. Lee, meanwhile, stood in jaw-dropped awe at Guy's fiancé, a randomly hot babe that Jiraiya would have killed for to date. Shikamaru and Temari sat next to each other on a couch, both blushing from consuming too much alcohol and being in love. Choji sat across from Kiba, heaping plate onto his food and then neatly eating it with careful gusto.

Naruto scanned the ordered chaos once more, searching for Hinata. As Kakashi wandered off to help Sakura and Ino, Naruto sighed and wondered if Hinata couldn't make it.

"Naruto! I thought you weren't going to come!" Naruto swiftly turned and found himself face-to-face with a blushing Hinata. "You're the last one here; even Shizune and Tsunade-sama are here." She pointed to the kitchen, where Naruto caught a glimpse of the duo in aprons, rapidly preparing more food for Kiba and Choji to devour.

"Well, I was training, and I forgot the time." Naruto smiled as he attempted to make up an excuse for being late; he had actually taken a nap at home after training and woke up later than he thought he would.

Hinata giggled and blushed again. "You really should listen to your alarm clock, Naruto." She had been with Naruto long enough to know that he simply turned off the alarm when it rang. "But, uh, have you had anything to eat yet? The roast beef Shizune made is very delicious."

"Well, I am hungry from all my training." Hinata led Naruto tenderly by the wrist to the center table. Kiba gave a half-hearted wave before shoving an entire chicken leg into his mouth. Naruto and Hinata smiled nervously to hide their disgust, before they began forming plates of their own. "Aw man…" Naruto whined, as he scanned the selection before him.

"What is it, Naruto?" Hinata asked, before noticing Naruto's disappointed face. "Oh, there's fried ramen on the other side of the table." She said, before secretly sampling a piece of sashimi.

"Thanks Hinata." Naruto leaped, ducked, and dodged the deadly projectiles of food from Kiba's mouth and arrived at the other side of the table relatively unscathed. He piled on the ramen and added a cut of roast beef, three rolled eggs, and a piece of fish cake. Hinata sidled up next to him and they found a quiet place to sit and eat.

"Naruto, I have to tell you something." Hinata whispered, nervously picking at the piece of roast beef on her plate. "It…it's about us."

"Huh?" Naruto swallowed and looked at Hinata, who fixed her gaze on her food.

"Um..." Hinata blushed, before deciding to tell Naruto the best news. "I'm pregnant." She blurted her gaze meeting Naruto's.

To Naruto, everything stopped. Tsunade, Shizune, and Kakashi peeked out from the kitchen, still wearing "Kiss the Cook. Please?" hats. Sakura and Ino floated in mid-stride, both carrying fresh plates of food. The flecks of food that escaped Kiba's maw screeched to a halt just before they impacted Shino's newly decorated hood. Choji's food filled hand quivered precariously on the edge of his lips. Sasuke's jaw dropped. Shino raised a hidden eyebrow. Shikamaru and Temari paused in mid-drunken kiss. Tenten's breathing was labored. Neji lay in a sober heap at her feet. Lee blushed. Guy flashed his trademark "Guy's Approval of Youth!" pose.

And as suddenly as it began, it started up again. The three cooks laughed and went back to cooking. Sakura and Ino gracefully swapped the empty dishes for the full ones. Kiba's scraps made even more colorful spots on Shino's hood. Choji's food instantly disappeared into the localized black hole of Choji's mouth. Sasuke's mouth returned to its usual, emotionless slit. Shino's hidden eyebrow returned to its "disgusted" position. Shikamaru and Temari vanished. Neji cried. And as Tenten attempted to process Lee's bold move, only one thing came to her mind. She kissed him. Everyone had returned to laughing, chatting, eating, or brooding. Only two did otherwise. Naruto had fainted, and Hinata was trying to wake him.

_Well, he took it nicely_, thought Hinata.

--

In a dark forest somewhere in Konoha, a single ray of moonlight illuminated a lone ninja. His glasses gleamed as he glanced at the only source of light, and wondered if his informant would show.

"I see you've arrived early." A deep, booming voice called out. Keisuke hid his startled face from the light, and took a deep breath.

"So even you aren't sure if he's involved with the recent massacres?" Keisuke began, wishing to finish his business here as quickly as possible.

"That is correct." The deep voice responded. It echoed into the darkness of the forest, as Keisuke continued to piece together the different reports and information he had gathered. "However, it is likely that he is not working alone, either."

"So someone in Konoha is a traitor." Keisuke coldly remarked, a frown crossing his hidden face. "Many things are not adding up."

"But the evidence so far points to your conclusion." Keisuke's eyes twitched slightly at this remark, but he kept his face carefully hidden from the moonlight.

"It's only a hypothesis. Nothing has been concluded yet." Keisuke frowned again for just a moment, before starting to leave. "However, I'd like you to report back to me in one month. Hopefully you'll have more information on the one who took down the ANBU squad three months ago."

"I'll do what I can." The deep voice's echo receded into the darkness, as Keisuke listened for any sounds or signs of movement.

"Interesting…" He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Perhaps you have been quite useful after all…" With a wave of his hand, Keisuke vanished in a puff of smoke.

--

Naruto watched with complete boredom as Hinata studied the outlines for different styles of weddings. Beside her lay stacks of wedding gown designs, kimono designs, cake designs, seating arrangements, guest lists, and generally uninteresting things to Naruto. What he wanted to do now was train for his upcoming match against Drago. He sighed and looked out the window. A few clouds dotted the sky, while a pair of birds flew into the distance.

"What about these?" Temari placed another pile of designs and catalogs into the pile beside Hinata. "Shika and I decided to elope; it was simple and cheap." She gave her husband a mischievous glance, to which he simply blushed and pretended not to notice. "But since you're part of the Hyuga Clan, I guess that money is no object, huh?"

"Well, not really." Hinata murmured, rolling up one scroll and picking another from the pile. "Although I think we'll do a traditional style wedding; that's how it's been done in our family." She opened the scroll and began reading. "Right now I'm looking for my wedding kimono."

"Have you taken a look at these?" Temari fished out a large catalog and passed it to Hinata. "They have a large selection, and the store is just a few blocks from here."

Naruto decided that he had stayed there long enough, and stood up to leave. He had just taken his first step when suddenly he stopped and quivered in frustration. He turned his head and glared at Shikamaru angrily.

"Hey, don't blame me, Naruto. Blame them. They just told me to keep you here." Shikamaru shrugged. "You know how Temari is if I don't keep her happy."

"But this is boring! And I've got to train for my battle against that Drago guy. He was the one who destroyed that whole section of forest!" Naruto felt his muscles relax as Shikamaru's shadow separated from his. "Besides, whatever Hinata picks is fine with me."

Shikamaru and Temari shared a knowing smile, and laughed. "You've still got one more week, and you've been training all the time before. One day of not training won't hurt." Temari insisted, ushering Naruto beside Hinata.

"Hey, Naruto! What about this one?" Hinata pointed to a wedding cake with a spiral design. "We could add the Hyuga Clan symbol in the middle, if we wanted."

"Looks good." Naruto blandly remarked, entirely unhappy about his current situation. After pouting uselessly for a few minutes, he reluctantly took a peek at the page Hinata was looking at and blushed. "Er…Hinata? Why don't we, uh, do this together?" He gingerly flipped the page. After all, getting married to Hinata in a green jumpsuit was definitely a bad idea.

--


	3. Fight for Your Life

PrinnyMist steps out from behind a red curtain

PrinnyMist steps out from behind a red curtain. However, he is promptly knocked aside by Sasuke, who nods at someone offscreen.

"**Disclaimer:** **Naruto and his universe are property of Masashi Kishimoto. I do not own these characters, the manga, or the anime in any way, shape or form. My only wish is that you keep an open mind when you read this fanfiction, and to leave a review and/or constructive comment**." Sasuke calmly announces.

"**PrinnyMist however, does own these characters: Natsuki, Ryousuke, Keisuke, Drago, and Nina.**" Hinata squeaks, as she and Naruto are forced onto the stage by the rest of the Konoha-nin.

"That's right! Last chapter had a little bit of action, but this chapter contains A LOT of action, so you better not miss it!" Naruto energetically shouts. "BELIEV--"

Hinata strikes Naruto in the chest with her Juuken. "No." She sternly remarks, before dragging the unconscious Naruto off towards the Japanese Dubbing Room.

"As Naruto learns how to say "Dattebayo!" again, PrinnyMist presents: "

Naruto: Rising Darkness

Chapter 3

Ryou breathed heavily as a drenched Natsuki slid backwards from the force of his attack. He fell to one knee and began to meditate in order to relax his body. Natsuki shook herself off and walked over to her husband.

"Ryou-chan, take it easy. Naruto won't be too hard to beat." Natsuki purred, helping Ryou up on her shoulder. "Just stick to the moves you've been practicing against me and you'll do fine."

"I don't know." Ryou whispered, as they sat down near a small stream. "The reports of his strength would not lie."

Natsuki snuggled her husband and laughed. "Hey, you're pretty strong yourself. You taught yourself a lot of techniques before you even got here. You've learned so much since I found you. You've even got your ice Kekkei Genkai under your control! Besides, if you can't handle it, I'll be there to back you up."

Ryou laughed and returned the hug. "Yeah, you're right, Natsu-chan."

Natsuki squealed with delight. "I love it when you call me Natsu-chan!" She squeezed and shook Ryou, laughing. The two continued laughing as the sun began to set.

--

Tsunade watched as the crowds calmed down for the first match. She noted the positions of her ANBU soldiers and smiled. All twenty had dispersed evenly amongst the crowd, along with 20 more Jounin watching for any signs of trouble. If anything went wrong, it would soon be over. Beside her, Shizune and Natsuki watched with worry as Keisuke and Konohamaru faced each other in the arena.

"Lady Natsuki, are you sure your 'students' won't cause too much damage?" Shizune whispered, her voice trembling with concern for the Third Hokage's grandson.

"They all have many abilities they have yet to show. Although…I do believe your Konohamaru has the advantage." Natsuki calmly responded. "I'm just a little worried that our target might discover our plan. He's fairly close to the waiting area, and there's an ANBU right behind him."

"Relax. If everything goes well, we won't have to worry about him destroying Konoha." Tsunade grinned impishly at the pair beside her. "But for now, let's enjoy the show!" She pointed towards the two combatants, who had just traded the first blows.

Konohamaru tumbled backwards from the force of Keisuke's kick. He wiped the trickle of blood from his lip and smirked; Keisuke slid backwards, clutching his stomach. Konohamaru leapt forward, performing several rapid hand signs, ending with the sign of the tiger.

"Karyu-Endan!" Konohamaru blew a stream of fire from his mouth, engulfing the stunned Keisuke. Natsuki's eyebrow rose slightly before returning to its usual position above her cold, analytical stare.

"Amazing power." She commented calmly. "He's still so young, and to perform such a powerful technique; it must be the blood of his grandfather."

"It's also his desire to be like Naruto." Tsunade smiled. "Although he tends to overdo things and rush head first into danger without much of a plan, he often manages to complete his goals in the end."

Konohamaru let out a puff of smoke as the fire left his mouth. He grinned; Keisuke lay on the ground, silently burning. _Silently_? Konohamaru gasped. Behind him, Keisuke calmly gathered lightning chakra in his hand.

"Impressive attack. But if you can't catch me, you can't hit me. This match is over. Lightning Cage!" Keisuke thrust the orb of lightning chakra at Konohamaru, who turned just in time to get hit in the face. The lightning expanded and trapped him a sphere that shocked and paralyzed him. Konohamaru shouted with pain as the lightning trapped his arms and legs. He didn't feel the lightning subside and the hard dirt floor, but he felt the pain of his loss.

"You…how…come I…couldn't…" Konohamaru struggled to speak and stand, but he could only manage to wiggle helplessly on his back.

"You're just weak and foolish." Keisuke commented, before turning his back to his fallen opponent. "If you want to win, you have to fight as though your opponent is stronger than you." Keisuke chuckled. "Of course, even though you're the Third Hokage's grandson, you're nowhere near my level of strength."

Konohamaru growled as Keisuke casually accepted his victory, and watched as the medics arrived to take him away. _I'll show him…I'll be stronger than him, because one day I'll be the Hokage_!

--

Drago smiled. _At last_, he thought, _a worthy foe_. He and Naruto stared each other down, reviewing each other's skills, strengths, and weaknesses.

"I hate waiting." Drago grinned, rushing towards Naruto.

"Kage bunshin!" With a puff of smoke, four clones of Naruto faced the charging warrior. Two clones leaped above Drago, while the other two rushed forward. Drago's grin grew as he planted his feet and hands, preparing for the four clones' attacks. The two charging clones reached him first, and he effortlessly spun around, driving his powerful legs into their stomachs. The two airborne clones angrily attempted to deliver their powerful punches, but soon found themselves below the Dark-nin's elbows. As the four clones collapsed and vanished in puffs of smoke, Drago landed and spun around, grabbing Naruto by the wrist. Barely an inch from his face, a swirling ball of chakra exploded, sending the two combatants flying away from each other. Drago somersaulted and landed firmly on his feet, while Naruto collapsed in a heap, unconscious. Drago paused for a moment to assess the battle conditions. _In battle_, he reminded himself, _one must always remain calm and focused_.

He closed his eyes and concentrated his chakra in his feet. "NOW!" He shouted, leaping high into the air as the fallen Naruto dispersed and the real Naruto erupted from the ground below Drago. "You're good." Drago grinned and gathered chakra into his fists. "But you won't be able to block this move! Burst Fist!"

Naruto shielded his face from the first blow, but instantly felt two blows to his gut. He recoiled in pain as several more blows impacted his face and chest. He kicked upward to stop one of Drago's blows, but his foot went right through the illusionary fist. Naruto's eyes widened with shock as Drago kicked him back towards the arena floor. He crashed into the dirt, creating a large cloud of dust. Drago continued to fall as well, gathering a large amount of chakra in his right fist.

"It's over! SONIC BLAST!" Drago plummeted into the cloud of dust and smashed his fist into the ground. Fissures expanded from the point of impact as the entire arena shook with the force of the attack. The dust cloud continued to expand, hiding half of the arena floor.

"No way!" Sakura gasped. "That's almost as much strength as I have!"

Sasuke activated his Sharingan and shook his head. "The dust's pretty thick. I can't see anything."

Hinata stared into the rising dust cloud with her Byakugan. She frowned and wrinkled her brow, confused by the disappearance of both combatants. "Where did they go?"

"LOOK!" Neji shouted, pointing towards the sky. Drago floated in mid-air, his limbs limp and covered with scratches. "Naruto must've got him!"

Hinata's eyes widened as she watched the five chakra systems rise to meet the weakened Drago. "Go Naruto!" She shouted, hoping that her voice would reach across the arena.

"Uzumaki Naruto Barrage!" The clones shouted, smashing Drago back towards the arena floor.

"ARGH!" Drago growled, as crossed his arms in front of his face to shield it from the impact. He crashed into the arena floor and bounced once, landing on his back.. More dust flew in all directions. The five Narutos dispersed, as the real Naruto emerged from behind one of the few trees left standing.

Keisuke nudged Ryou as Naruto clutched his sides and limped towards Drago. "Perhaps the fox is not as powerful as you originally thought." He whispered. Ryou simply continued to stare analytically at Naruto.

Keisuke's gaze shifted towards his fallen teammate. _I'm amazed you didn't go all out like you normally would, my friend_, he smugly thought. _You're closer to surpassing me than ever before, Drago_.

"I surrender." Drago groaned as he lay on his back. He slowed his breath as he stood, attempting to calm himself down after being thoroughly beaten. As Naruto limped towards him, Drago slowly headed for the stairs to the waiting box. "You're tough, Naruto." He paused beside Naruto for a moment. "But you'll never last against Ryou."

Naruto watched Drago ascend the stairs, while Anko declared him the winner. As he neared the stairs, he turned and shifted his gaze to Ryou, who simply stared down at him with unusually intense, unblinking eyes.

--

"I forfeit!" Nina shouted, as her opponent, one of the Mist ninja, flinched and looked at her with complete surprise. Tsunade raised her eyebrow as Natsuki smiled.

"There's no sense in her wasting precious chakra." Natsuki chirped, as the Sand and remaining Mist ninja faced each other.

"Hey Sasuke, I just noticed that Drago is back in the waiting area." Sakura whispered, pointing to her right.

"I would have thought that with his injuries, he'd have left with a medic team." Sasuke casually remarked, keeping his attention focused on the current battle. "What concerns me is that the kunoichi simply quit. Like Kankuro did six years ago." Sasuke looked at Sakura, her face full of concern.

"You think they're up to something?" Sakura glanced back and forth between Sasuke and the Dark-nin. She began to look around the arena, noting the positions of the ANBU. She looked behind her and frowned; two ANBU were directly behind them. "Sasuke, we should go."

"No. I want to see Ryou's fight. I have to know…" Sasuke frowned. "I have to know how strong he really is."

"But what if they attack us or something?" Sakura whispered urgently, grabbing Sasuke by the arm. "I don't want you to get hurt!"

"Everything will be fine, Sakura." Sasuke turned to her and silenced her with a kiss. "I can take care of myself; it's you and Naruto I'm really worried about."

Sakura blushed, and quickly hid her face. _Of course_, she thought, trying to hide her tears. _You act like you don't care but you really do. You came back because you had no choice; because you had to hide from Him. And as long as we're together, I'll protect you from Him. You have friends here, Sasuke. We'll all protect you_.

Anko watched as the medics carried away both ninja; they had knocked each other out. She glanced towards the Hokage's seat, then towards the waiting area. Naruto and Keisuke had already left it.

"No need for introduction, Miss Mitarashi." Keisuke calmly said. "Everyone knows who we are already."

Anko turned around to face the Dark-nin and grimaced. He appeared so calm and relaxed, and he snuck up on her without making a single sound. Anko cautiously backed away from the center of the arena, as Naruto slowly made his way towards Keisuke. His limp was barely noticeable, but his breathing was heavy.

"If you're tired, give up now. Otherwise you'll just be beaten like your friend." Keisuke taunted, a smug grin spreading across his face. "You're just another obstacle in the way of our true goal."

Naruto frowned as he tried to make sense of his opponent's boasts. "What do you mean by 'true goal'?" Naruto shouted, as Keisuke laughed with delight.

"Just…watch." Keisuke began forming hand signs, as Naruto growled and rushed towards him.

"Betraying Fog!" Mist began to envelop Keisuke, as Naruto skidded to a halt. Everything around him had become a fluffy, thick, unremarkable white. He could hear explosions and screams in the distance to his right, and raced towards them. He took a few steps and paused; suddenly the noises came from behind him. Naruto turned around, and flinched. He felt the warmth of blood on his cheek, and wiped it with his thumb. He stared at it, and suddenly remembered how to dispel illusions. He quickly formed the hand sign to stop his chakra flow, and began to focus.

"Lightning Cage!" Naruto dropped his focus as the lightning surged through his body, paralyzing his limbs and dulling his senses.

"ARGH!" He roared, as he flopped onto the ground. "What are you up to?" He gurgled, attempting to escape his desperate and hopeless situation.

Only silence answered him. Naruto's eyes welled with tears; one of the screams had been Sakura's.

--

Sakura's bloody, battered body lay in the silent streets of Konoha. The buildings around her had been demolished, and several deep trenches had been gouged into the ground beside her. "Sa…suke…" She cried, gently placing a bloody hand on her stomach. "I…I'm scared…" She opened a bruised eye and watched as the white clouds above faded away into darkness. A drop of blood fell from her closed eye onto the ground. It lingered for a moment then vanished into the pool of blood that drenched Sakura's back.

--

"Sakura got in our way." Nina nervously reported to Natsuki. She quivered violently, terrified of both her Jounin commander and Sakura's immense power. "Drago opened seven gates to defeat her…she's near death…the area around her is completely destroyed. No casualties, unless the injuries he gave her are…"

Tsunade flinched as Nina's words trailed off. Her worried expression did not change as she continued to examine the damage to Drago's body.

"He's just badly injured. If he has time to rest, he'll make a complete recovery." She stood up and looked straight at Nina. "Tell me where Sakura is."

"I…I'm not sure…I think, somewhere in the Ginzo District…But we did destroy an entire city block…" Nina shivered. "I was nearly killed in that battle…"

"At least both of you are alive." Keisuke coldly commented. "That's…the most important thing." He raised his head and smiled, a warm, friendly smile, one he reserved only for the darkest times. "Right now, though, I must concentrate on finding Sasuke. I'll trust you can take care of everything here?"

Tsunade, Shizune, and Natsuki surveyed the chaos around them. The ANBU and Jounin had already evacuated most of the audience, and had restrained several disguised Sound ninja who had attempted to chase after Sakura and Sasuke. Suddenly, Kakashi appeared beside them, his head bowed.

"We've reports of several Sound ninjas who have infiltrated the village. We've dispatched ANBU and two Chuunin squads to hunt them down." He calmly reported as he stood up. Tsunade and Natsuki shared a smile before the latter leaped away.

"Recall the ANBU and Chuunin. Those Sound ninja won't get far. They're after something we've got covered quite well." Kakashi started to speak, but Tsunade raised her hand. "Have faith in our new allies. They will not let any harm befall Sasuke or Naruto." She glanced at Keisuke, who smiled.

Tsunade smirked; the signal for Keisuke to begin. He searched for Ryou to give him the signal. He frowned as he passed over the area Ryou had been waiting in. The robed ninja was not there. As Keisuke prepared to leave, he glanced at the arena floor. His eyes widened. Naruto had vanished.

--

Keisuke gritted his teeth as the revelations of his kage bunshin at the arena became available to him. "So the little fox managed to recover…damn the Nine-Tales and its recovery ability!" He firmly landed on a roof and scanned his surroundings. "I must hurry. If he finds me, he'll jeopardize the entire mission!"

"Exactly what is your mission?" Sasuke landed behind Keisuke, his Sharingan active. "Is it to kill me? Or are you after something else?"

"Both." Keisuke laughed, before raising his palms to the back of Sasuke's head.

Twin blasts of wind chakra burst from Keisuke's hands, annihilating the section of roof that Sasuke and Keisuke's clone had been on. Keisuke quickly looked to his left and dodged the blasts of fire that scorched the air around him. The burning scent still filling his sense of smell, Keisuke took a deep breath and unleashed a gust of air that sliced apart the roofs of the buildings in front of him. Metal flashed as Sasuke's sword cleaved Keisuke's head off of his shoulders.

"Damn it!" Sasuke rolled off of the damaged roof as shuriken impaled the kage bunshin and the space he had just left. He swung his sword to parry Keisuke's. His eyes widened as the second blade streaked towards his head. Blood gushed into the air from Sasuke's shoulder, as Keisuke confidently wielded his two kodachi.

"We're nearly the same speed. We've got similar stamina. Our skills are comparable. But I've got one thing you don't have." Keisuke charged. Sasuke prepared his sword to parry Keisuke's attacks.

Sasuke felt the six slashes on his back. He flinched with pain and spun around, slicing through Keisuke's kage bunshin. He winced as he felt a slash across his good shoulder and another on his right leg. He slashed at his opponent's feet, but only cut the air. Sasuke rolled into an alley, as Keisuke watched from above. A trickle of blood fell from Keisuke's closed lips, and he quickly wiped it with his thumb. He stared at it for a moment and sighed. "I can't keep up with him…not unless I start using my secrets. But then again, I've got to save my strength for my battle with the other one, too…" He scanned the area once more. He fixed his eyes on the Hokage monument, and smiled. In a flash, he leaped towards his goal.

--

"Get out of my way!" Naruto shouted, as two kage bunshin rammed two Rasengan into Ryou's belly. The mizu bunshin burst, spraying Naruto's clones with shards of ice. Naruto leaped backwards and used the top of a wooden crate as a shield against the tiny needles.

"Sorry. I can't." Ryou murmured, flinging a fistful of ice needles at Naruto. "My orders are to prevent you from reaching Sasuke."

"I won't be stopped by anyone this time!" Naruto growled, dodging the thin projectiles and countering with a barrage of shuriken. "I'm not gonna abandon Sasuke after he's finally come back!"

"Give it up. I don't want to hurt you." Ryou frowned, as the shuriken bounced harmlessly off of the thin layer of ice he surrounded himself with. "I just need you to trust me, and wait."

"To hell with that!" Naruto shouted, as his kage bunshin raised a Wind Rasengan over its head. Ryou glanced over his shoulder and frowned as the clone shoved the swirling ball of chakra straight into his face. "Got you!" Naruto cheered, as the space Ryou was in became a maelstrom of wind.

"Sorry. You missed." Ryou calmly remarked from behind Naruto. As Naruto turned in shock, Ryou pushed Naruto backwards with his palm. He immediately formed several balls of ice in his hands and flung them at Naruto. The spheres glistened in the sun for a moment before bursting into tiny shards of ice. Several needles pierced Naruto's left arm and leg, while many more cut his face and edges of his clothes. Ryou watched with an emphatic expression as Naruto fell to the ground with a thud. He turned towards the Hokage monument, but felt a menacing presence behind him. He turned to face Naruto again, forming more ice needles.

Red chakra swirled around Naruto as he picked himself off the ground. He glared at Ryou with his Kyuubi eyes.

"I said…don't get in my way." Naruto growled deep, as a red Rasengan instantly formed in his right hand. "I'm not gonna abandon Sasuke again!"

"Why do you continue to fight?" Ryou asked, flinging the needles at Naruto. Naruto deflected the needles with an arm of chakra and sped towards Ryou. "Why do you care so much about defending a betrayer?"

"He's not a betrayer!" Naruto shouted, racing towards Ryou. "He's my brother! Ever since he came back, we promised to look out for each other!"

"I see. You just don't give up, even when it seems like you have no choice. You've found a purpose in this world. Someone to defend." Ryou's cheeks puffed as he unleashed a torrent of water on Naruto. The Rasengan faded as Naruto tumbled several meters backwards by the force of the water.

"What the hell?" He growled, his Kyuubi chakra glowing intensely

"I…had no one. I grew up with everything, in one of the few mansions in the Land of Waves." Ryou's eyes were distant, but his body easily swayed to dodge Naruto's shuriken. "My parents were very strict and wanted me to become a businessman like my father. But I wanted to be a ninja, like my mother once was."

Naruto frowned as Ryou absently kicked him backwards. His story was no different from anyone's, just in a different setting. Naruto growled, attacking with tendrils of Kyuubi chakra. Ryou blocked them with ice coated arms and continued.

"I tried to become a ninja, practicing day after day. I learned how to do Kawarimi and Mizu Bunshin all on my own, by watching others. But when my father found out, he beat me." Ryou lowered his gaze to meet Naruto's. His eyes glimmered with regret, sorrow and hate. Naruto paused for a moment to survey this sudden change in his foe.

"I wanted to kill him. I wanted to show him how weak he truly was, and how strong I could be. So I ran away from home…I wandered across the land, searching for a way to gain ultimate power. I eventually came across the Village of Darkness, and without any questions, they accepted me into their academy. The training was difficult, but not impossible. Although I wasn't at the top of my class, one of the top Jounin in the village offered to train me. Under her guidance, I became powerful enough to be considered a Jounin as well."

Ryou's gaze lost the tingle of hate, but the regret grew. "But…I couldn't kill anyone. I nearly failed my very first mission. I just…couldn't allow myself to kill even someone who wanted to kill me. It was odd. I had focused all my efforts on becoming powerful just so I could return to that mansion and kill my father. But I showed a complete stranger and enemy mercy? I just felt…empty. I told my mentor this, and…" Ryou smiled as his eyes began to fill with hope. "She told me that no matter how many jutsu I learned, or how much chakra I had, I could never match the strength that came from protecting and loving others."

Naruto thought back to the same words that Jiraiya had mentioned to him. He let the Kyuubi chakra fade as Ryou took a step towards him.

"Now I know why you are so strong. It is not the Kyuubi inside of you…it's the desire you have to protect others." Ryou held out his hand. "I was under orders to keep you away from Sasuke for a short time. I'm sorry, but orders are orders."

Naruto recalled Tsunade's orders to murder Sasuke if he tried to attack Konoha. He gazed into Ryou's dark yet friendly eyes. Naruto smirked as he shook Ryou's hand.

"But now that my mission is over, Sasuke is in danger. We must now reach him before our enemies do." Ryou remarked, just before a shadow landed with a wet crunch behind him. He swiftly turned around, preparing his ice needles. Natsuki landed gracefully in front of the butchered Sound ninja and pointed her thumb at the Hokage monument.

Ryou nodded his understanding as more Sound ninja arrived at the scene. Waving to Naruto, the two raced off as Natsuki swiftly and quietly cut through three Sound ninja who tried to chase after them. She turned to the others and grinned widely.

"Come on boys. I haven't heard you scream in pain yet."

--

Sasuke coughed up blood. He tightened the bandages on his shoulders and leg, and tried to slow his breathing. He could feel the blood on his back soaking into his skin and the tree bark behind him. Even if he ran, his opponent would be able to track the blood he left behind…

He looked wearily at Konohagakure and slowed his breathing. Below him were the faces of the five Hokages who had protected the village with their lives. He felt an immense wave of strength as he thought of them, and of Sakura, Naruto, and the others. _Why haven't they come to help me_? Sasuke shook his head in frustration. "It's because they can't." He admitted, looking at the unscathed arena. "But…that means…"

"Your friends were no match for us, Sasuke Uchiha." Keisuke announced in his usual, cold manner. Sasuke frowned as the Dark-nin landed across the clearing from him.

_He's about ten meters away…if I move; he'll be on me in a second_. Sasuke's frustration grew as he tried to think of a way to escape his assassin. He did not want to die like this. He wanted to live, to be with his friends, with Sakura…

"I'm sorry, but our mission is to kill you." Keisuke charged with a sword in his hand. "Our employer wasted no expense in purchasing our services for this mission. Now then, die, Sasuke Uchiha." He charged, as Sasuke's eyes widened with fear.

_No! I can't die now! I haven't lived up to my promise to Naruto and Sakura_! Sasuke cringed and covered his eyes as a bright light enveloped him.

For a moment, everything was silent. Sasuke opened one eye; in front of him laid the bloody corpse of Keisuke. He gasped and noticed the figure standing above the body.

"Shit…he figured out who I was then, huh?" Keisuke frowned, spinning his kodachi. "How many more of you are out there?" Keisuke yelled, as three Sound ninja and an ANBU walked slowly out of the bushes.

"What's the big idea?" One of the Sound ninja growled, drawing a kunai. "I though you were supposed to kill the Uchiha?"

"Unfortunately, we found a higher bidder." Keisuke grinned. "Now then, where's your boss? He's on to our little game, and we wouldn't want to keep him waiting."

"Kill him." The ninja rumbled. The ANBU charged at Keisuke, who easily cut his foe into ribbons. He wrinkled his nose as the smell of rotting flesh poured from the body.

"So…this is one of the ANBU that he captured." Keisuke's eyes widened with realization. "Shit!"

He barely felt the slash on his back, but the pain was unmistakable. Keisuke fell to his knees as the poison from the blade worked its way around his body. He began to take deeper breaths, but trembled violently as the poison took hold of his entire body. His vision blurred, and then, he saw nothing.

Sasuke watched as the Sound ninja kicked aside an unconscious Keisuke and focused on him. _Damn, I can't do much in this state_! Sasuke gritted his teeth and prepared for the worst. The leader of the Sound ninja nodded his head as the last undead ANBU charged at Sasuke. _I don't want to die yet_!

"Sasuke's not gonna die, not if I have anything to say about it!" Naruto shouted, as his Wind Rasengan smashed into the ANBU. As the whirling dome of energy subsided, the dead body fell helplessly to the ground, completely defeated. Naruto smiled and flashed Sasuke a thumbs up, before promptly collapsing from exhaustion. Sasuke's eyes widened; now the Sound ninja could use Naruto as a bargaining chip, too.

"Damn." Sasuke whispered, as the slightly shocked Sound ninja recovered and began to march menacingly towards him.

"It's not over yet!" Ryou's loud, determined voice surprised Sasuke. Ice needles converged on the Sound ninja, reducing them to bloody ribbons. Ryou leaped into the clearing, his robes tattered and soaked with blood from numerous cuts.

"They're coming." Ryou wheezed.

"Too late, I'm afraid." Sasuke shuddered as the soft and menacing voice cut the air. "In your current states, I'm afraid that you're no match for me."

"We'll just see." Ryou growled. He began forming hand seals as black lines began to cover his body. "Back-up's just two minutes away. I can hold you off until then. After all, I'm protecting someone." Ryou stated, before releasing a large amount of water from his mouth. The water rushed towards a figure in the trees before surrounding Sasuke and Naruto. Through the deafening roar Sasuke heard repeated clashes and yells. He waited tensely as the battle continued, until at last the water around him lost its fury. The wall of water vanished, revealing a large group of ninja that included Tsunade and Natsuki.

Natsuki immediately rushed over to a fallen Ryou and began crying and yelling. As Sasuke began to lose consciousness, he heard the sinister voice once again.

"I'll be back, Sasuke. After all, you belong to me…"

As voice retreated into the depths of his mind Sasuke's eyes closed from exhaustion.

--


	4. Farewell

Sasuke, Naruto, and Neji step out from behind a red curtain

Natsuki steps out from behind the red curtain and looks around. She is the only one there. She smiles evilly before disappearing behind the red curtain again.

"RYOU-CHAN!" She yells. Within seconds, a young man in priest-like blue robes rushes onto the stage. He skids to a halt next to Natsuki.

"**Disclaimer: Naruto and his universe are property of Masashi Kishimoto. PrinnyMist does not own these characters, the manga, or the anime in any way, shape or form. PrinnyMist's only wish is that you keep an open mind when you read this fanfiction, and to leave a review and/or constructive comment.**" Ryou said in one breath.

"**PrinnyMist however, does own these characters: Me, Ryou-chan, Keisuke, Drago, and Nina.**" Natsuki adds, before grinning mischievously. "Say…we're all alone…you know what we're gonna do, right?" Natsuki nudges Ryou.

"But what if PrinnyMist finds out we took over his intro section?" Ryou begins to panic.

"Heh, like he'll be back." Natsuki pushes her chest into Ryou's arm and wraps her arms around him. "Don't chicken out like last time, either."

"But…" Ryou tries to escape, but Natsuki's vice grip prevents him from moving.

"I think that this time, we should totally replace the current chapter with one of those crack shipping things." Natsuki drags Ryou offstage, searching for a computer. "I've seen some pretty messed up stuff on the Internet…"

Ryou looks at the non-existent audience, his eyes pleading for help.

"Before Natsuki changes the chapter, PrinnyMist presents: "

Naruto: Rising Darkness

Chapter 4

Sasuke scowled as Sakura fed him more hospital grade mush. "Sakura," He sighed, raising a bandaged hand in front of the spoon. "You've done enough."

"No, I haven't!" Sakura weakly protested, cringing as her right arm throbbed with pain. She dropped the spoon and attempted to dull the pain by using her chakra. After a minute, the pain subsided and Sakura collapsed onto Sasuke's stomach. Sasuke slowly stroked her hair with his undamaged left hand.

_Sakura's face is so peaceful_, he thought. He smiled slightly and nudged her awake. "You should get back to bed; the nurses might stop by any moment." Sakura sleepily nodded and dragged herself to the bed on the other side of the room. Bandages covered her entire body, and although she tried not to show it, Sasuke knew that Sakura's heart was in pain. _She couldn't help me_, he thought, opening and closing his left hand. _And I couldn't protect her. I've never felt…so weak_.

"Hey Sasuke! Sakura! We brought you some treats!" Naruto cheerfully teased, waving the fruit basket from the doorway.

Sasuke smiled as he sat up, but flinched as his lower back flared with pain. He tried to hide his scowl as a bandaged Naruto, Hinata, and Kakashi quietly took their places around Sasuke's bed.

"Hey, thanks for coming, everyone. Tsunade says that she'll be able to heal me tomorrow, and that Sakura will be out by next week." Sasuke slowly fell backwards into his pillow.

"That's good to hear." Naruto's voice carried a hint of sadness. "Hey Sasuke. I'm, uh…I mean, we're, me and Hinata…" Naruto paused to compose himself. "Hinata and I are going to get married next week." He paused again, looking deeply into Sasuke's surprised eyes.

Sasuke smiled. "That's great, Naruto! I'm sure you two will be very happy together!"

"Yeah, we will…Er, Sasuke?" Naruto blushed. "Could you…uh…could you be my best man?"

Sasuke laughed. "Of course I will! Come on, Naruto, I wouldn't want to miss your marriage for the world!" He glanced over at Sakura, who snored peacefully. "But, Sakura might not be able to make it."

"Yeah, I know. That's why…that's why I wasn't sure if you'd want to come." Naruto looked over at Sakura, who rolled onto her side and continued snoring. "You and Sakura are…inseparable now."

"Yeah, I know. We both want to protect each other."

"Hey Sasuke. You know Sakura's pregnant, right?" Sasuke's jaw dropped slightly, but he remained silent.

"She didn't want to tell you because she didn't want you to worry. You've been through a lot and there's the rumor that you're being targeted for assassination." Kakashi calmly reported. "At first we thought those Dark-nin were the assassins."

"But our true goal is Sasuke's real assassin." Keisuke coldly commented, as everyone except Kakashi's hair stood on end. He stood in the doorway, apparently completely healed. "I came here to apologize for nearly killing you, Sasuke."

"That's all in the past." Sasuke cautiously smiled; he still did not trust Keisuke completely.

Keisuke bowed deeply before pulling a blank white card from his vest. "I believe you know the one on the card." With a quick swipe of his hand, Keisuke turned the card over for Sasuke to see. Sasuke's eyes widened; he knew the ninja on the card all too well.

"I'm not surprised. I heard his voice during the battle."

Keisuke nodded gravely, and turned to leave. "Stay here, with your friends, Sasuke Uchiha. Leave your assassin to us."

Sasuke waited until Keisuke had closed the door before he took his next breath. The card, now blank again, lay on the table beside his bed. "The ghosts of the past have come back to haunt me." He weakly said, staring blankly at the ceiling. "Naruto, Hinata, Kakashi…Thank you for being here for me." The trio nodded, their eyes fixed on the card. "But I'm afraid…for the first time, I'm afraid. I don't want anyone to get hurt…He'll, he's the kind of monster that would hurt my friends to get to me…"

--

Natsuki sat beside Ryou's bed, her head bowed in meditation. She glanced at her husband as a tear rolled down her cheek. It had been a week, yet he had not awoken from his coma.

"You fool. Using your cursed seal…you knew its effects." Natsuki sobbed, holding his hand in hers. "You let Father brand you with that experiment…it nearly killed you that time, and look at you now."

A knock came from the door. Natsuki wiped her tears and coldly announced, "Enter."

Naruto slowly opened the door and peeked inside. "Um, hi."

"Hello, Naruto. You may enter." Natsuki quietly declared. Naruto sheepishly snuck in and stood in the center of the room, his head bowed. "Please, sit. There is another chair against the wall."

Naruto brought the chair beside Natsuki's and sat stiffly on it. Ryou's slow, methodic breaths matched the diaphragm's rhythmic inflation and deflation.

"I'm sure you know of cursed seals." Natsuki quietly asked, as she pulled back the collar of her kimono. "My father is very interested in their effects. Particularly the ones that have to deal with accelerated regeneration and chakra enhancement." She leaned a little toward Naruto, a black tattoo of "Demon" barely visible on the back of her neck.

Naruto thought of Sasuke's seal and how Orochimaru used them to make his prized subjects stronger.

"Father experimented on prisoners and the sick. They never survived. So when he decided to test it on a healthier subject…Ryou immediately offered to be the one." Natsuki straightened herself and gazed at her comatose husband.

Naruto's eyes widened as Natsuki shed a few tears. "We had just been married…he said he did it because he didn't want someone else to suffer. Father objected, but Ryou didn't give up. And when Father finally gave in…"

Natsuki began to openly cry. "Ryou…he went insane. We restrained him with steel clamps and left him in a test cell…every night I watched from the door as he struggled to regain his former self. It hurt so much…" Naruto said nothing as he stared at Ryou's motionless form.

"Why did he do it then? Why did he give himself over to some mad dream?" Naruto barely knew he had let the words slip. Natsuki wiped her tears and turned to Naruto, her face calm and collected. _It's like she's wearing a mask_, thought Naruto.

"One day…as I sat outside the door, I heard my name. At first I thought I was hearing things, but I heard my name again. It was so quiet I could hardly make out where it was coming from. I stood up and looked inside my husband's cell. I saw his lips move and at once I knew he was the one calling my name. I tore open the door and rushed to his side. He was crying and trembling, but he kept whispering my name. I cried and kissed him and held him as though it was our first time. And then…he whispered into my ear his real reason for becoming father's test subject." Natsuki took Ryou's hand in hers. "He whispered 'I love you'. And at that moment I knew. I knew that he would do anything for us, his first real family."

Naruto recalled Hinata, Iruka, Kakashi, Sakura, Sasuke, Tsunade, everyone in the village. He would do anything to protect them; they were his family and friends.

"In just a few days after that, Ryou was training again. He used the seal repeatedly so that Father could take notes and develop better seals. But…each time he uses the seal, Ryou's cells degenerate faster than normal." Naruto thought about his Kyuubi chakra. "The seal can only provide him with more chakra by killing his cells. It doesn't heal or protect him…and if Father applies another seal, it might kill him." Natsuki smiled through her tears. "But you know…I love him just the way he is."

Naruto smiled too, thinking of Hinata. "He'll be just fine. As long as you two love each other, the two of you will always be together."

Natsuki laughed. "It's sort of strange, hearing that from you. But still…thank you for listening to me." Natsuki bowed as Naruto rubbed the back of his head.

As the diaphragm continued its steady operation, the edges of Ryou's mouth turned upwards.

--

Keisuke smirked as Kabuto revealed himself. The last remaining supporter of Orochimaru smiled as he approached the waiting Dark-nin. He wore robes similar to his former master's, but had kept his silver hair in the usual ponytail. His glasses were dark; not because it was night, but because he had to hide the snake-like eyes that once belonged to the Snake Sannin.

"I see you've taken on more of your master's appearance." Keisuke leaned against a tree and waved a blank white card in front of his face. "Your plan nearly worked, but you made a fatal error." He wiped the card with his right hand and tossed it to Kabuto.

Kabuto sliced the card in half with his chakra scalpel, before smiling at the confident ninja. "Oh? I've only been trying to find out who's trying to kill Sasuke, too." Kabuto began to circle Keisuke.

"I know that…But you already know who's trying to kill Sasuke, so why don't you just do it already?"

"Kill Sasuke? Oh, no, no, no. You mistake my intentions. I simply want to form a partnership with him." Kabuto paused behind Keisuke's back.

"Partnership? Well now, your dead friends tell me otherwise. Perhaps—" Keisuke hacked up blood as Kabuto withdrew his hand from the gaping hole in Keisuke's chest.

"Yes. Partnership. But simple-minded fools such as yourself would never understand." Kabuto paused, staring at the body. "Damn you…" He slashed the face off of the dead body, revealing the shocked face of a Sound ninja he had ordered to infiltrate Konoha during the final stage of the Chuunin Exam. Kabuto kicked the body away and stared angrily at the night sky. In one week, the moon would be full, and he would be within steps of becoming the most powerful being in the world…

Kabuto picked up the two shimmering halves of the white card. He slowly put them back together, wondering what the card had contained. He smiled as the words began to form.

"The Darkness Rises on the Midday's Night."

--

Sasuke gazed at the picture of Team 7 from six years ago beside his bed. Naruto had given it to him during one of his many visits. He smiled and caressed the simple wooden frame and the freshly cleaned glass that shielded the contents from the effects of time. Sasuke slowly turned the picture face down, and leapt from the window.

"Sorry, Naruto, Sakura…everyone."

--

"Where's Sasuke?" Naruto shouted, as the last guests trickled in and took their seats. Dressed in a debatably appealing orange tuxedo, he looked to Shikamaru and Neji for answers. The two shook their heads and shrugged. Naruto sighed and clenched his fists. _He promised that he would be here_! He angrily thought.

Keisuke frowned as he leaned outside the door to Naruto's dressing room. _This does not bode well. He's falling right into Kabuto's trap_. Keisuke looked at Drago and Nina, both ready for combat. "Has Tsunade prepared her squads?"

Keisuke's teammates nodded gravely, as Keisuke took one last peek into Naruto's room. "Then we change our plans; our new mission is to capture Sasuke and bring him back alive." He faced his teammates once more, and all three nodded. "Move out!"

They vanished, leaving behind three wisps of smoke. Inside Naruto's room, Neji and Shikamaru prepared for the worst. In a few moments, everything would come crashing down…

--


	5. Will of Fire

Kabuto appears in the middle of the stage

Kabuto appears in the middle of the stage.

"Finally, something I can take over!" He cackles.

"**Disclaimer: Naruto and his universe are property of Masashi Kishimoto. PrinnyMist does not own these characters, the manga, or the anime in any way, shape or form.**" Pein mumbles, as the rest of Akatsuki crowd onto the stage. Kabuto tries to escape, but is quickly trampled by the cloaked figures.

"**PrinnyMist's only wish is that you keep an open mind when you read this fanfiction, and to leave a review and/or constructive comment.**" Deidara chimes in, the halo over his head shining brightly

"**PrinnyMist however, does own these characters: Natsuki, Ryousuke, Keisuke, Drago, and Nina.**" Itachi adds; his oversized 3 dollar sunglasses and halo prominent.

"What sucks is that we're not even in this fanfiction." Kisame grunts. "Come on…why does that freak have to be the main villain?" He points Samehada at the trampled Kabuto.

"Yeah. You know how much we would've gotten paid if we were the main villains?" Kakuzu grumbles, holding up an abacus. "We would finally be able to buy all those new piercings for Pein, actual shades for Itachi, fish food for Kisame…"

"Oh put a sock it in. At least you're still in one piece." Hidan loudly complained. "Zetsu, can you pass me my arm…ZETSU! DON'T EAT MY #&! LEGS! I NEED THOSE!"

Sasori and Konan glance at each other and shrug.

"Tobi's a good boy!" Tobi chimes in, sticking his face directly in front of the camera. "Tobi thinks we should all hurt Kabuto since he got the main villain role instead of us!"

Kabuto cowers as Akatsuki turns to face him.

"Good idea." They all reply, as Itachi takes off the sunglasses. He smirks as he activates his Mangekyo Sharingan.

"Fun time…"

"Ignoring the screams and cries of pain, PrinnyMist presents: "

Naruto: Rising Darkness

Chapter 5

Sasuke impaled the nearest Sound ninja with his Chidori as ten more flew their kunai at him. Using his Sharingan to detect the incoming attack, Sasuke shielded himself with his victim, then pulled his arm from the body and began forming hand signs. He ended with the sign of the tiger and unleashed a Goukakyu on the Sound-nins, burning half alive and scorching the others badly. Behind the rolling balls of flesh and screams, Kabuto watched with quivering excitement. He licked his lips as one ninja slashed Sasuke across the back, while another sent his kunai straight into Sasuke's left leg. Above, the full moon and sun dragged their way across the sky towards each other. He looked back at Sasuke, who had drawn his sword and cut down several more Sound-nin.

"I'm sure you realized that I initiated the attack on Konoha to lure you out here. I thought you to be smarter than this." Kabuto taunted, as Sasuke decapitated another attacker. "You haven't even used your Mangekyo yet. I'm surprised; before you would do anything to win, and now you're struggling to even kill these pawns."

"Shut up!" Sasuke shouted, stumbling backwards with pain. "You…I'll kill you…"

"Can you really?" Kabuto laughed, adjusting his glasses. "Lord Orochimaru escaped death, and I can, too."

"That technique won't work on me! My body is my own!" Sasuke retorted, pulling kunai from several of his wounds.

Kabuto roared with laughter. "Only if you're alive, Sasuke…only if you're alive."

--

Naruto kissed Hinata. He might never have another chance. Around them, Sound and Leaf ninja clashed. They parted, and gazed into each other's eyes. Their tears welled up, as Naruto withdrew his hands from Hinata's body and turned away. Hinata fell to her knees, unable to say or do anything to stop him.

"Hinata. I promise you. I'll come back, and we'll be together," He paused and took one last look at his bride.

"We'll be together…forever." Hinata finished, smiling through her tears. Naruto smiled too, before turning away and facing forward.

He leaped towards his friend, hoping that he would make it in time.

--

A nurse screamed and dropped the tray of hospital grade food. The wind carried the scent of blood through the freshly opened window. She quickly turned and raced out of the room, screaming for help.

Sakura had vanished.

--

Keisuke slashed through the dead ninja for the tenth time. The corpse fell, and he raced forward. Suddenly, a rotting hand grabbed his ankle, and he crashed into the blood soaked dirt. He growled as the top half of a dead ninja crawled towards his neck.

"Water Fang Missile!" Nina shouted, as a torrent of water burst from the scroll she carried. The gallons of water smashed into the undead ninja, washing it away and giving Keisuke his chance.

"Nina! Drago! I'm going after Sasuke!" Keisuke shouted, just as a blur of orange streaked past him. "Damn!" Keisuke threw a kunai at one of the zombies leaping towards Naruto. "Naruto! It's too dangerous!" Keisuke gritted his teeth as he realized that Naruto was no longer within hearing distance. He glanced back at the chaos behind him, then back towards the direction Naruto had vanished in. "Why does he always complicate things?" Keisuke grumbled, before giving chase.

--

Sasuke crashed into the pile of dead bodies he had created. He held back his vomit and leaped from the already rotting bodies. Kabuto grinned with madness as he used his chakra to reanimate his fallen subordinates. He eyed the pile of corpses that Sasuke had landed in, and decided he'd save that surprise for later. He scanned the tree branches for his foe, while his undead army waited with eternal patience for its master's commands. Kabuto's grin lessened as Sasuke flung blades of lightning at him. With a flick of his finger, two zombies immediately intercepted the blades with their bodies.

"As long as I have these pawns, you can't defeat me!" Kabuto cackled, his snake eyes gleaming with anticipation. "In a few minutes, I'll have finished you off, and you'll be my precious puppet forever!"

"Then it's time I got rid of your pawns!" Sasuke shouted, blowing large balls of fire at the corpses. Several impacted the zombies directly, cooking them alive. Four zombies used their fallen comrades as shields, waiting until the barrage of flames had ceased. Emerging from behind their charred shields, they charged at Sasuke, who stood wearily in front of a tree. The four ninjas slashed at their target, creating deep marks in the tree. Behind them, Sasuke took a deep breath and unleashed a large flame upon the brainless minions, quickly turning them to ash. Sasuke coughed up blood and kneeled, exhausted from the relentless assault.

"Ah, I see you've given up. Good, good. It's time for me to take your body anyway." Kabuto watched as the moon and sun began to cross paths. The darkness spread across the battlefield, shrouding the entire forest in complete blackness.

Sasuke's Sharingan glowed red in the darkness. They saw the dead bodies rising and forming ranks. Twenty undead ninjas blindly raced towards Sasuke, who bent his legs and prepared for the bloody battle.

--

Hinata watched the shadows creep towards her. She struggled to escape the rising darkness; her legs weak with sorrow. Around her, the victorious Konoha-nin watched with awe as the solar eclipse covered them all in ominous shadow. Hinata's tears flowed freely as she looked to the horizon, to Naruto. She clutched her heart as it exploded with pain.

"NARUTO!"

--

Nina dropped her summoning scroll as the shadow enveloped the battlefield. The cheers of the Konoha-nin had died down, replaced by reverent, silent fear of the natural wonder they were witnessing.

Drago's jaw flapped as his eyes widened. He couldn't believe his eyes. The land was shrouded in darkness in the middle of the day! But as he continued to stare, the shadows moved. Sunlight illuminated the land once more, and Drago shielded his eyes from the intense, sudden brightness. He let his hands fall to his sides, and he fell to his knees.

"Something…very bad has happened."

--

Sasuke lay on his back. Blood streamed from his mouth and body. Beside him lay twenty seared corpses. He stared at the sun as if for the first time, amazed by its warmth. He raised his hand towards it, to take hold of it and warm his cold body. He cried as his strength failed him, and his arm fell back to the earth. Sasuke gasped.

Naruto stood above him, his back surrounded by angelic rays of sunlight. Sasuke didn't know whether to laugh, cry, or just keep his mouth open in awe.

"Hey…Sasuke…" Naruto's voice was far away. Sasuke tried to form words, but his voice had gone. Tears of happiness flowed from his eyes as his mouth formed Naruto's name.

Suddenly, to Sasuke's horror, Naruto began to sway as the golden aura instantly faded into the shadows. Sasuke yelled silently in fear as Naruto collapsed, vanishing from his view. Strength filled Sasuke's limbs as he leaped to his feet and rushed to his fallen friend. He crouched beside Naruto and cried as he stared at the growing patch of blood on Naruto's chest.

"Naruto! No…No way…You can't be…"

"YOU DAMNED FOX!" Kabuto screamed, blood streaming from his entire body. "YOU USELESS, FAILURE OF A NINJA! HOW DARE YOU INTERFERE?"

Sasuke turned his head and glared at Kabuto. His Mangekyo Sharingan spun with anger, as Sasuke's body tingled with chakra. Flames began to spread over his body, filling his tired muscles with new strength. His wounds no longer throbbed with pain. He felt neither happiness nor sadness. All Sasuke felt now…was anger.

Kabuto puked up a river of blood as Sasuke's body began to glow white with lightning chakra. Naruto's Rasengan had damaged him too severely once more, and his timely interference had already ruined Kabuto's careful planning. Kabuto shook with anger and pain as Sasuke began to flicker behind the heat of his chakra.

"Die." Sasuke whispered, before enveloping himself, Kabuto, and Naruto in blinding light. And in a single moment, Sasuke remembered everything, his pain, his sorrow, his family, his friends, Sakura, Naruto…

--

Keisuke shielded his eyes from the blinding light of Sasuke's Mamoru Chidori. He swiftly hid behind a tree as the chakra exploded, sending a ray of pure white light straight into the heavens. To Keisuke, it seemed an eternity before the intense light faded. As he opened his eyes, the darkness of the forest rushed in, and he shook his head with confusion.

"What was that?" He muttered, rubbing his eyes. He opened them once more and peeked out from behind the tree. He narrowed his eyes as two shadows fell backwards. He landed between them and struggled to keep his composure.

To his left lay Kabuto, the gaping hole in the center of his chest spewing blood. To his right lay Sasuke, his bleeding eyes shut and his breath ragged and irregular. He kneeled beside Sasuke and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"What happened?" Sakura shouted, landing beside Keisuke. Her arms and legs were still bandaged, but she showed no signs of pain. "That's Kabuto…" Her gaze shifted to Keisuke, then downwards. "SASUKE!" She screamed, her tears already soaking her clothes. "SASUKE! NO! SASUKE!"

"Sa…Sakura…" Sasuke's bloody hand shook as it caressed her cheek. Keisuke backed away and looked around. His gaze fell on the shreds of orange fabric. Keisuke shivered as he recognized the body.

"Naruto…Damnit!" He loudly remarked, leaping over to Naruto's motionless body. He kneeled and held Naruto's wrist. "Damn…his pulse is so weak." Keisuke's voice cracked with guit.

"Sakura…Naruto…please, save Naruto!" Sasuke pleaded, trickles of blood flowing from his the corners of his eyelids. "Sakura…Please save…Naruto!"

Sakura shook her head as her tears mixed with Sasuke's blood. "He has the Nine-Tails! He can heal himself!"

"No…Naruto's heart is damaged." Keisuke forcefully slowed his breathing and wiped his tears with his sleeve. "He's barely breathing."

Sakura's heart plummeted. She couldn't believe the choice she had to make. She wanted to save Sasuke, she had to save Sasuke; he had come back to them after six long years, he wanted to be with them, to be happy once more. She glanced at Keisuke, who said nothing, then at Naruto. Naruto…Naruto would be married to Hinata. They were happy together, like she and Sasuke were. Sakura sobbed as she reached for Sasuke.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke…I can't…"

--

Hinata tried to hold back her tears. This was the moment she had been dreading, the moment that she had wished would never come. She shook her head and sniffed back her tears. Now was not a moment for tears. Now was the moment to show everyone that she would hide her feelings longer.

Hinata blushed and kissed Naruto. She felt his warm lips receive hers, and the buzz that she felt grew louder. She withdrew her lips and blushed even more; it was finally done. The buzz became a roar, as the audience applauded and cheered. She was no longer Hinata Hyuga, but Hinata Uzumaki. She smiled as Naruto led her from the altar and down the aisle. They paused as they passed the first row.

Sakura sat next to the aisle in the second row, her head bent over her lap. As Naruto and Hinata approached her, she quickly looked up and smiled through her tears.

"Both of you will be very happy together." She sobbed, before lowering her head again. Naruto and Hinata exchanged concerned glances, and stepped closer to Sakura.

"Sakura…" Naruto began, as Sakura raised her head once more. "Thank you."

Sakura bawled as the three hugged, remembering Sasuke and his sacrifice.

--


	6. For the Future

PrinnyMist appears on the stage

PrinnyMist appears on the stage. Naruto and Hinata walk in from stage left while Ryou and Natsuki walk in from stage right.

All five join hands and take a bow.

"This will be the last chapter of my fanfiction." PrinnyMist announces. "It's been a wild ride, and I hope that you enjoyed it."

"PrinnyMist may be busy with his studies and life, but one day, he'll write more fanfiction." Hinata adds.

"That's right! He's got some ideas lined up; all he has to do is figure out which one to write!" Naruto laughs.

"**Disclaimer: Naruto and his universe are property of Masashi Kishimoto. PrinnyMist does not own these characters, the manga, or the anime in any way, shape or form.**" Natsuki begins.

"**PrinnyMist's only wish is that you keep an open mind when you read this fanfiction, and to leave a review and/or constructive comment.**" Ryou continues

"**PrinnyMist however, does own these characters: Natsuki, Ryousuke, Mai, Keisuke, Drago, and Nina.**" Sasuke finishes, popping up beside Naruto.

"You're late!" Naruto shouts, as Sasuke sighs.

"Rehearsals for this chapter took longer than I expected. Kabuto was injured, so we had to find a replacement." Sasuke calmly replied. "So…what're we gonna do now?"

"Um…party?" PrinnyMist suggests.

"PARTY!" Everyone gladly agrees. The walls drop, revealing a packed night club. Akatsuki continues to pummel Kabuto while the residents of Konoha dance and drink. The group instantly vanishes into the crowd, as the red curtain slowly falls.

"To the sound of techno and flashing lights, PrinnyMist presents: "

Naruto: Rising Darkness

Final Chapter

"It's not him. He switched the bodies just before he was killed." Keisuke kicked Kabuto's false body into the fire. The stitches on the neck burned away, as Keisuke sat down and sighed. "This means he's probably waiting for the right time to take Sasuke's body for whatever plans he has."

Tsunade nodded and covered Sasuke's body with a white cloth. "I don't think we could've done anything to stop his death; he had several fatal injuries, and his body was completely drained of chakra. Mamoru Chidori…a technique that envelops both friend and foe in a blinding light…Sasuke created it to protect others…even at the cost of his own life."

"Yes…he died protecting his friends…" Keisuke dropped his forlorn gaze and folded his hands. "I was born with a sick body. My clan wanted to kill me, but my mother saved me by leaving me to die in the wild. I survived, and eventually found my way into the Village of Darkness." Keisuke smiled. "There, I met Drago and Nina. I had friends, teammates. I wanted to protect them, too." He pulled the back of his jacket down, revealing his cursed seal. "Lord Kiyoshi branded me with this. There's an experimental version on Ryou. This one is complete, and prevents my disease from becoming incurable, but each time I use this seal for over three minutes, my body begins to decay again at an accelerated rate." He covered it again and rubbed the back of his neck. "Tsunade-sama. I respectfully ask for your cooperation for my final mission…"

--

Kabuto cautiously watched as the last of the stars disappeared behind the ominous rain clouds. He scanned the night sky; complete darkness. He turned his gaze upon the phantom lights of the graveyard. One tomb in particular caught his gaze. He ventured closer, making neither sound nor shadow. The phantom lanterns that illuminated the graves flickered as he passed, then quietly faded away into darkness. Kabuto stood before the tomb of Sasuke Uchiha and smiled. Now, the ultimate power would be his.

Kabuto rolled up his right sleeve, revealing a tattoo of two snakes. He pricked his left thumb with his fang and swiftly wiped some blood onto the tattoo. Instantly, two snakes burst from the ground beneath him and smashed into the tomb, reducing it to a pile of rubble. Kabuto grinned as one snake withdrew from the wreckage, its mouth swelled to capacity. The snake spit out a coffin, before disappearing in a puff of smoke along with its partner. Kabuto effortlessly shoved the lid off, revealing his prize. His eyes widened as he gazed into the empty container.

"I'm sorry. You're a tad late." Keisuke sat leisurely on a tombstone behind Kabuto. "I've already hidden him from your sick, twisted clutches."

"You again! You've interfered with my plans for the last time!" Kabuto growled, performing a series of hand signs. "Unfortunately for you, this graveyard is the perfect arena for me; all these graves will yield excellent pawns for me to use."

Keisuke laughed as he slipped off the tombstone and began performing hand signs. "Try all you want; all these corpses have been moved, too." He grinned. "Except…one."

Kabuto paused; his technique had failed to summon the dead, leaving him with no other option but to run.

"EDO TENSEI!" Keisuke shouted, clapping his hands together. The ground trembled as a single wooden coffin burst from the ground. Kabuto's eyes widened; it was the same technique Orochimaru had used against the Third Hokage. The coffin's lid creaked open, and a pale hand reached out of the coffin.

Kabuto grinned out of anger and fear. Facing an enemy revived by Summoning Reanimation was difficult even for him; he had no way of removing the soul bound to the sacrificial body. If he was to escape, he would have to escape now.

"NOW!" Keisuke shouted, as Tsunade, Natsuki, Ryou and Sakura appeared at the corners of the graveyard.

"Dimension Barrier!" Four walls of light formed in front of them, surrounding Kabuto, Keisuke, and the coffin. In a flash of white, they disappeared, replaced by the shimmering reflections of the four ninjas on the outside. They gathered together on one side of the barrier and waited; there was nothing else they could do.

Kabuto glanced at the walls of the barrier. Although moonlight curiously shone through the barrier, the trees and ninja on the outside had been replaced by pure darkness. He looked up; it was the same bleak color as the walls. Grinding his teeth with anger, he turned to face Keisuke, who simply smiled and pointed to the coffin and its ghostly hand. The hand gripped the lid of the coffin tightly and shoved it down. Keisuke's smile grew.

"You…You're mocking me." Kabuto coldly whispered, as the coffin's inhabitant stepped forward. "This…This is just like my master's attack on Konoha…" Kabuto stepped backwards, as Sasuke straightened his back and glared angrily at Kabuto with his Sharingan.

"I see…Reanimation. Interesting." He turned his head to face Keisuke, who had already begun to activate his cursed seal. "Even my eyes have been restored. So now…I get to have my revenge?" He turned to face Kabuto, who immediately took a defensive stance.

"Damn you." Kabuto grumbled, before placing more blood on his tattoo. "I'll kill both of you and absorb your souls into mine. Even if I die, you'll be trapped in my hellish world for all eternity!" He shouted, as hundreds of snakes erupted from the ground.

"Now, Sasuke. We're going to finish this." Keisuke's body glowed red, as his seal engulfed his entire body. Sasuke's body glowed red as chakra surged into his resurrected body. "As long as I'm alive, this barrier will stand. If I die, then the barrier will fall."

Kabuto growled as the red chakra swarmed around his foes, seeping into their bodies. This was different from his master's technique; this one combined the life forces of the summoned soul and the caster. He reached into the maw of the nearest snake and pulled out a reformed Kusanagi. He gave it a few swift test slashes before waving it in the air and pointing it at Keisuke.

"Bring him to me." Half of the snakes charged at Keisuke, their fangs dripping poison. The other half slithered toward Sasuke, their mouths open wide with hunger.

Keisuke summoned his two kodachi and twirled around, reducing several of the snakes to bloody ribbons. Sasuke impaled a snake with a blade of lightning as he unleashed several blasts of fire at the snakes slithering behind Keisuke's back. Kabuto scowled as his snakes were slowly defeated by the duo's powerful attacks. As the last snake split down its middle, Keisuke and Sasuke turned their attention upon the twitching Kabuto.

"Excellent warm-up, Kabuto." Keisuke grinned. "I didn't even have to use my seal's full power."

Sasuke charged his Chidori silently, waiting for Keisuke's commands. Although he still had his free will, he preferred attacking as a team instead of attempting to fight Kabuto one-on-one. His mistake in the last battle had been to fight against him alone, but now he realized that friendship was something he could never let go of. "I'm ready when you are." He calmly mentioned to Keisuke, whose entire body was engulfed by the seal now. In a flash, both streaked towards their foe.

"Damn!" Kabuto ducked Sasuke's Chidori then rolled aside as Keisuke sliced the ground with his kodachi. He kneeled and parried Sasuke's blade with the Kusanagi as Keisuke circled behind him. Kabuto kicked Sasuke and spun to block the first kodachi with the hilt of the Kusanagi. The second clashed against the Kusanagi's blade, and the legendary sword sung from the impact. Kabuto shoved Keisuke backwards and leaped into the air as Sasuke's Chidori punched through Keisuke's chest. The kage bunshin vanished as another Keisuke smashed Kabuto back towards the ground. A third Keisuke formed hand signs rapidly as the stunned Kabuto plummeted towards him.

"Piercing Earth Needles!" Shards of rock hovered in the air as Kabuto fell between them. Keisuke clenched his fists, causing the shards to converge on Kabuto, reducing him to a fountain of blood. Keisuke relaxed as his kage bunshin landed beside him. He scanned the area around him as Kabuto's hollow, pale skin landed on the ground without a sound.

Sasuke kneeled beside Keisuke, his Sharingan fixed on the skin that Kabuto had shed. "The last place we would look." He commented with a smirk. "But he's running out of options." Keisuke nodded as his kage bunshin dispersed. He would need all the chakra he could gather for his next attack, and his three minutes were running out.

Kabuto surfaced from beneath his molted skin, clutching a scroll in his right hand. His eyes boiled red with anger and frustration while the scratches and punctures on his body slowly healed. Kabuto threw the skin aside and bared his teeth. If he was to end it, it would have to be now.

Keisuke watched as Kabuto unrolled his scroll. His eyes widened with surprise as hundreds of corpses flew from the scroll. They landed with wet thuds on the ground, surrounding Sasuke and himself with their putrid stench.

"I was hoping I wouldn't have to resort to using my prized subjects, but it seems I have no choice." Kabuto regained his composure as the corpses moaned and rose to their feet. "I do hope there's something left of both of you for me to absorb."

Keisuke glanced at Sasuke, who nodded and charged his Chidori. Kabuto laughed as his undead minions leaped towards the duo. Blood and body parts flew outward from the mass of flesh and collided with the walls of the barrier as the two ninjas fought desperately against the overwhelming horde of zombies.

Kabuto recalled his remaining zombies, revealing the battered and bloody Keisuke and Sasuke. He laughed as the pair fell to their knees with exhaustion. Although he was exhausted himself, once Keisuke was dead, it would all be over. He pointed at Keisuke, as his entire army of the dead charged at the weakened ninja.

In a flash, Sasuke ignited them with his fire techniques. Keisuke burst from the flames, flinging his two kodachi at Kabuto. The Kusanagi flew from its hiding spot, slashing aside the pair of projectiles. Kabuto snatched it from the air and swung downwards at Keisuke, who caught the blade between his two palms. Kabuto gripped his sword with both hands and forced Keisuke to his knees. His red snake eyes burned with anger and delight as the blade inched its way toward Keisuke's skull.

"You're finished!" Sasuke shouted, as the white aura of his Chidori filled the barrier. He thrust the Chidori forward, as Kabuto's eyes bulged.

Outside, Tsunade, Natsuki, Ryou and Sakura shielded their eyes from the white light that suddenly burst from the barrier. The barrier shattered from the force, and tombstones and chunks of flesh flew towards them. Ryou reacted in an instant, releasing a torrent of water from his mouth that spun around the women and him, blocking the dangerous and disgusting projectiles. As the light died down, the swirling barrier collapsed, and the four ninjas surveyed the destruction.

Sasuke and Keisuke lay motionless on the ground. Kabuto stood above them, motionless as well. Sakura took a step forward, but the Tsunade other stopped her.

"Gotcha." Keisuke grinned from behind Kabuto. He tightly gripped Kabuto's shoulders, as his fallen kage bunshin vanished. "Surprised?"

Kabuto twitched as he tried to turn his head to face to Keisuke. "You were hiding in the ground the entire time. But…what have you done to me? Why can't I move?"

"You're…about…to join…your master…in hell." Blood streamed from Keisuke's mouth. "We're gonna…have lots of fun…in the belly of…the Death God!" Kabuto's eyes widened with shock as the Death God ripped his soul from his body. Keisuke flew backwards as a seal formed on his chest. His glasses shattered as his pupils widened, then faded into darkness. He landed on his back, his body limp and motionless. Tsunade carefully walked over to his body and grabbed his wrist.

"Definitely dead." She gravely concluded, shaking her head.

"Uhn…Uh…" Sasuke groaned, lifting himself off of the ground. "Uhn. Sakura. Sakura…"

Sakura rushed to Sasuke's side and placed his head on her lap. Sasuke smiled weakly, as he felt his legs grow cold.

"Sakura…I don't have much time." He turned to face her as his arms grew cold as well. "Is…Is Naruto all right?"

Sakura nodded, trying to hold back her tears.

"That's…good to hear…Sakura…Thank you for…loving me…Take care of…Naruto…and…" Sasuke paused as the cold feeling crept to his neck. "Sakura…take care of…our future…" Sasuke closed his eyes as his entire body turned cold. Sakura stroked Sasuke's hair as she held his head to her stomach.

"I will, Sasuke…I will."

-- 16 years later --

The sun rose as it always had on the village of Konoha. Its citizens slowly but surely opened their windows and stores, and the streets began to buzz with the latest gossip. One such topic, the appearance of the Hokage monument, permeated all conversations. The reason why everyone talked about the monument was because it had been once again defaced by an orange-wearing miscreant.

"HA HA HA! LOSERS!" The goggle wearing, orange-clad youth yelled, as several citizens and ninja responded with their own cries. The hat of the Hokage bounced through the crowd, until at last the Sixth Hokage burst from the crowd and stared up at the familiar graffiti on the faces of Konoha's former leaders.

Naruto sighed as he noticed that even his face had been vandalized. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" He shouted, as the black-haired youth flashed a mischievous smile.

"I'm sorry, Lord Hokage." A kunoichi sternly apologized, placing her foot on the railing. She took a deep breath as the youth began to flail at the sight of the familiar pink hair.

"SOJIRO UCHIHA, YOU GET YOUR SORRY BUTT DOWN HERE RIGHT NOW!" Sakura bellowed, as Naruto flinched and took a few steps backward. "DON'T MAKE ME CARRY YOU DOWN!"

Sojiro panicked again; when his mother meant by "carry" involved him being knocked unconscious and heaved over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

"I'm so sorry, Naruto. I think he's just mad that he wasn't able to pass the preliminaries for the last part of the Chuunin exam."

"Don't worry about it, Sakura. His opponent was very talented herself. I doubt even my daughters would be able to stand up to her." Naruto laughed. "I expect to see Sojiro's face in the crowd tomorrow. Even if you do have to tie him up again."

"I remember when we did that to you. The time has sure gone by quickly." Sakura sighed. "Well, you had best be going back to your work. Tomorrow's a really big day!"

With that the two friends smiled and waved farewell.

--

Naruto held Hinata close as they approached the memorial. They paused and bowed, honoring the many names engraved on the stone. Naruto kneeled in front of the stone, removed his hat and bowed deeply. His forehead touched the cool stone foundation. He slowly raised his head and focused on a name near the bottom of the memorial.

"Hey Sasuke. Just came to say hi before the Chuunin exams today. Your kid's not gonna take part in it, but he'll be watching every move." Naruto chuckled. "Remember how I always used to joke around and create mischief? Sojiro's just the same." Naruto smiled as he touched Sasuke's name. _Your name's just as cool and calm as you were, Sasuke_.

"Dear, we're going to be late." Hinata quietly warned, placing her hand on her husband's shoulder.

"Of course. Gotta go, Sasuke. Being Hokage is a lot of work." Naruto stood and bowed one last time for his friend. He replaced his hat and took Hinata's hand. They turned and slowly walked towards the arena where the final stage of the exam was to be held.

--

Sakura checked her watch; Naruto was late again. To her left, Ryou and Natsuki sighed and leaned their heads against each other's. To her right, Gaara continued drumming his fingers on his armrest. Sakura smiled nervously at the Kazekage, as Inner Sakura promised to annihilate Naruto after the exam was over.

"Sorry we're late; a funny thing happened on my way here…" Naruto cheerfully waved from behind Sakura, who spun around and shook her fist in Naruto's face. Naruto slurped up the remaining noodles and downed the soup in a second.

"I am this close to killing you!" She shouted, as Naruto burped and threw his chopsticks and plastic bowl to the side. "Why must you always be late for the important things?" She groaned, pinching her nose and waving a hand in front of her face.

Naruto shrugged innocently as he skirted around Sakura. In the middle of the arena, his twin daughters, Hitomi and Kanami giggled.

Temari waited until the Hokage had safely taken his seat before turning to face the eight Genin who would be competing for the rank of Chuunin. She smiled as her gaze passed over her eldest daughter, Shikame.

"Welcome, esteemed guests and HEY!" Naruto tumbled backwards. A few thumps and crunches were heard before Naruto reappeared with a black eye. "Ahem, esteemed guests, lords, and all you other people out there. I hope you enjoy today's competition, and the Ichiraku ramen booth just outside the arena entrance has some of the best ramen in all of Konoha!" Naruto waved and vanished again.

Temari nervously smiled as the thumps and crunches died down once more. "Okay! First match, Hitomi Uzumaki versus Mai Ryukana!" The other six Genin headed towards the waiting area, while Hitomi and Mai eagerly anticipated their battle.

Naruto frowned as Sakura healed the damage she had done to his face.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" She cried, attempting to smile. Beside Naruto, Gaara and Natsuki barely restrained their laughter.

Naruto sighed and watched as his eldest daughter and Mai clashed on the arena floor. As the battle raged on between the two Naruto turned to Sakura. "Hey, Sakura; what did Sasuke tell you before he died?"

Sakura paused and wiped a tear from her eye. She finished healing Naruto's bruises and smiled.

"He told me to make sure you didn't mess things up." Sakura laughed, as Hitomi dodged several exploding chakrams. "But it appears that I'm the one doing the messing."

"It's not nice to tell lies, Sakura." Naruto laughed. "Come on, what did he really tell you?"

Sakura laughed and blushed. "I can keep some things secret, can't I?"

Naruto sighed and turned his attention back to the two combatants. He wondered if Sasuke was watching, even though his son wasn't participating. His gaze rose to the audience, and he smiled once more; Sojiro sat on the edge of his seat, intently watching the battle.

He remembered his promise to his predecessors and quietly excused himself.

--

Naruto smiled as his now cleaned face towered over him. He removed his hat, passed his gaze over the previous Hokage and closed his eyes. Faintly, he could hear their voices…

"Each and every person in Konoha is a part of me. You must love them, protect them, nurture them. They believe in you, and you must believe in them. You are Hokage…"

Naruto opened his eyes. He thought he heard Sasuke's voice at the end. He shook his head and placed his hat back on his head.

"I'll protect them, Sasuke. I'll protect Sojiro and Sakura, my family, my friends, all of Konoha. I know…that's what you would've wanted."


End file.
